Young Businessman Bearing Fruit

What a thrill it has been to watch John Wasswa grow into a prosperous businessman and a disciple with a strong desire to share his spiritual blessings and business knowledge. In 2005, John received a loan from the men's loan ministry (The Rock Kingdom Capital Outreach) to purchase additional machinery to grow his budding weaving business (he makes sweaters purchased by schools for uniforms). Not only has his business grown, he also has diversified, made all loan repayments on time, faithfully tithed to the church and set a Godly example of how to do business. Now John is ready to share the blessings by training and overseeing children in the new House of Hope in Kabale so that they may learn an income producing skill. We have set a standard that the House of Hope in Kabale be self-supporting within five years by the children being trained and earning income in such areas as weaving, sewing, gardening, arts and crafts,etc.

God Has Remembered Me!

House of Hope Kabale becomes a reality with grinning children overwhelmed with joy as they step inside the gate of their new home. Developing a sense of belonging was the focus of a game played during one of the evening sessions preparing the children.


Pastor Johnson Bakashaba, Yvonne Pickens, an assistant principal at Prestonwood Christian Academy and the Noblins worked as a team to evaluate the children’s needs and develop plans for the transition of children who have been out of school requiring special assistance to “catch up.” A sewing machine was purchased along with supplies to provide opportunities to learn a variety of skills. The children were encouraged to pray and think about ways to be creative in using God’s resources.


“God has remembered me,” beamed John, one of the children who previously had no permanent secure home.(Top picture in the green shirt and khaki shorts) The children were chosen by Pastor Johnson Bakashaba of Revival Tabernacle Ministries, who already had taken eight orphans into his own home with his wife and three natural children. An orphan himself, he has a special heart for desperate children, including those forced to live on the street. Four of the boys in the new House of Hope were living on the street before God provided an opportunity for us to assist in launching an AWANA Club in Kabale last summer. Through the club, which emphasizes Bible verse memory, awards and games, the four street boys trusted Jesus and now they are loved, housed, fed, schooled and disciipled with 12 fellow “brothers and sisters” in the House of Hope. Pastor Johnson will provide fatherly parental love and leadership to the children, who also will be cared for by Evas, a faithful widow of the church. God provided funds to open the house, but there still is a need for more supporters to meet monthly expenses.

Surprised by God-Given Skills

Sitting under a tree making beautiful jewelry out of natural seed pods, bones and trade beads is where you find a group of hard-working Kisumu women. There is a wonderful atmosphere of encouragement, teamwork and creativity. Some of the ladies prepare the beads by drilling holes, while others string, discuss designs and package the completed items. The bracelets, necklaces and earrings are beautiful creations of wearable art combining wood, bone, bamboo, glass and other unusual elements.

In November a group of ladies in Kisumu began a jewelry making class sponsored by Deliverance Church. Perez Oselu shared this week that “the ladies had never done anything like this. It was totally new for them.” However in a short time they have developed into creative artisans.

Being able to create, design and produce wearable art pieces was a talent many of the ladies found surprising. If you are interested in purchasing some of the items they are available at the Houses of Hope Gift Shop,201 Sparta Road, Belton, Texas 76513(254)933-8399,which helps support widows, orphans and women in need.

Go and Make Disciples!

Go and Make Disciples! This is what AWANA, a children’s discipleship ministry is all about. Children from Prestonwood AWANA club are actively participating in making disciples by planting AWANA clubs in Wakiso and Busia Uganda. Between the two clubs over 100 children will be discipled in a special way in their communities.

Susan Kaddu, of Central Baptist Wakiso Church said the week following the AWANA kickoff, “already children are bringing their parents to church when they weren’t coming before.” She said the discipline of time keeping is even having an impact in just one week. “Children showed up early for AWANA the second time which is very unusual for Africans.”

In Busia the children were eager to get started with game time and we are excited to see how this club is going to impact the border town between Uganda and Kenya.

The Kenyan AWANA Missionary reports receiving, “a bunch of requests to start AWANA clubs in various churches in Kisumu.” The first club started just a few months ago. God’s word is powerful and the enthusiasm of children is very contagious.

Hope, Restoration Begins at Home in Kabale

Pastor Johnson and the members of Revival Tabernacle welcomed the team Sunday morning. Margaret met with the house mom and the children today after church to begin preparations and brief the children as to the status of opening the home. They were such sweet children and all participate in AWANA and Sunday school at the church. Pastor Johnson said he chose these particular children because he felt they already had a natural connection in the church and that all had trusted Jesus as their Lord.

Margaret spoke to them about their identity in Christ, how we are all adopted children of the Lord and needed to adjust to being together as a family. Pastor Johnson and Margaret wanted to set some expectations with the children of what to expect in their new life. Several things were discussed such as having a sense of belonging, standing up for your brothers and sisters, understanding that their will be disagreements, that Pastor Johnson was their new Daddy, being aware that some of the children have bad hurts and that each member of the family must be patient and kind as everyone adjusts. Sharing stories and healing past hurts was an aspect of the orientation. A friend of Yvonne Pickens and the Noblins, Lutaaya Abdul, a former Muslim now born-again, who ministers to street children and orphans in Kampala shared his story and how he adjusted when he was living on the street as a young boy.

Several of the boys who are on the street were suspicious but as Lutaaya told his story their body language changed and they relaxed and listened intently. You could see the relief in their faces as they connected with the experiences of the pain and fear of being beaten by older street kids as they tried to survive in a rough environment. Many times Ugandans “keep quiet” when they hurt so when these things are discussed it is unusual. Margaret talked to the children about bringing the hurts out in the light so they could heal and asked them to pray about a sister or brother who would be their prayer partner and close friend in the family. As the healing process begins there will be many challenges for the house mom and the children. Please join us in praying for these children we believe God has chosen to be restored with a hope and a future.

Eighty Excited Children in Wakiso Uganda

Saturday was a day of excitement for the children at Central Baptist Church Wakiso, Uganda. Children from Prestonwood Baptist Church in Plano,Texas sponsored the majority of the students while the church “topped up” with the rest. Yvonne Pickens who is an AWANA leader at Prestonwood was on site with the Noblins for the kickoff club time. Consistently the AWANA clubs have drawn more children than expected and had a huge impact on the community.

The children in Prestonwood AWANA have sponsored the start up of several Uganda clubs through their own donations in partnership with the local churches where the clubs are planted. “It is so wonderful to be able to take back pictures to the children who have donated their offerings to these clubs” said Yvonne Pickens. “It really teaches the children about missions in a personal way.”


During this trip the team will be kicking off another club, sponsored by the Prestonwood AWANA, in Busia on the Uganda border with Kenya. We look forward to hearing stories of more children sharing the word of God with their parents and bringing them to church.

House of Hope Kabale, Uganda*

Do you know people who might want to join us in this amazing opportunity to bless Bruce (left) and John (right) who have been living on the street and joined AWANA recently in Kabale? They have hope because they believe in Jesus and like the other 13 orphaned children know God has a plan for them. Below are pictures of the House of Hope Compound for the 15 children proposed by Pastor Johnson.


Pastor Johnson has had the vision of providing a House of Hope for 15 children who are either total orphans, partial orphans with dying parents, or have been deserted to give them a safe, secure Christian home. We have had many discussions with Pastor Johnson about his vision and how it fosters a growth path for each child to be all God wants them to be.

Below are some of the distinguishing factors:

• Heal the hurts of the children through the use of Biblical counseling (Hope for the Heart) materials and training, fostering an environment of physical, emotional and spiritual security. Many children have been abused, abandoned, rejected and despised.
• Provide for a child who is orphaned, deserted or displaced to live in a Christian home where they are loved, nurtured, and trained to understand what it means to be responsible, contributing members of a family and society.
• Provide tutoring and other educational resources to lay a foundation preparing them to reenter school to get a good education. Some children have been living on the street and are not at grade level educationally.
• Develop entrepreneurial opportunities for the children to work and learn Biblical business skills to counter the corruption in Ugandan society. Some of the activities will include: jewelry making, vegetable gardening, sewing, raising chickens, arts and crafts, tourism activities and hospitality industry skills. The vision includes developing productive disciples and citizens in the community.
• Participate in ministry activities to foster knowledge of the Bible, application of scripture in day to day life and service as members of the body in the church. Some of the children already participate in AWANA Children’s Discipleship Ministry at the church.
• Match the children with mentors to disciple them and establish them in their spiritual growth.

$19,760 Minimum covers all the costs of the home for the first year. Including in this amount are the furnishings (living room, dining room, bunk beds, mattresses, sheets, towels, pillows, blankets, kitchen utensils, pots, pans, dishes, utensils, storage containers for bulk food) rent, utilities, food, staffing, clothes, school fees, medical care and personal items for each child (trunk, backpack, Bible)

The total breakdown of $19,760 is below:

• $4,760 Initial setup fees for furnishing the 7 room home includes: living room, dining room and kitchen furniture, dishes, utensils, pots and pans, and providing basic things for each child such as complete medical exam, bed, mattress, pillow, sheets, towels, blanket, mosquito nets, trunks, back packs, clothes, shoes, Bible and personal hygiene items.

• $1,250 monthly expense includes food, housing, staff, utilities, clothes, school fees and medical care for 15 children.

$2,000-5,000 Job Skills Ministry Start Up extras for materials for jewelry making, a sewing machine, fabric, bicycles for transport business, carpentry tools and wood carving materials, gardening tools, art supplies for greeting cards, chicken raising, and appliances for the kitchen (they can cook on charcoal until we get these for regular meals but Western appliances are needed for catering business)

Thanks for passing the information along to friends who might be interested. Most of the children are ages 12-16 with one 9 yr old and all are total orphans. Several people are being interviewed as house parents this week with one being a widow who is a secondary teacher with one adult son in college.

We plan on taking yearly sponsor trips to visit the home so that people will be able to see the ministry in action and meet the children. We appreciate your help in getting the word out.

* A ministry of People for Missions/House of Hope(501c3)and Revival Tabernacle Ministries of Kabale, Uganda. All contributions to People for Missions or House of Hope are tax-deductable. Please make checks payable to House of Hope, Kabale and mail to the Noblins, House of Hope Kabale, 4070 Meadowdale Lane, Dallas, TX 75229.